spin bikes (aka spinning cycle or group cycle)
 

Dear All,
I am a student at Staffordshire University, studying a
BA(Hons) in Product Design. For my final year I am going to be
designing a new spin bike (aka spinning cycle or group cycle), but at
the moment my knowledge is limited. Who better to ask, than people who
are into fitness or cyclists? So in my investigation I was told to use
the Google Groups for help. In my research I will be looking at
existing Spin bikes. So if people could reply with problems that have
occurred when using the bikes, I would be very grateful. An example of
this could be sitting on the bike, paddling, or the general style.
This would be a great help to me and vital research for the project.

Thank you for your time and hope to hear from people, soon.

begin quoting Chris Bastock :
I am a student at Staffordshire University, studying a
BA(Hons) in Product Design. For my final year I am going to be
designing a new spin bike (aka spinning cycle or group cycle), but at
the moment my knowledge is limited.

I have a good idea; something a bit like a spin bike, but useful for
transport, and which lets you see the country. We could call it "a
bicycle".

Who better to ask, than people who are into fitness or cyclists?

Seriously, for a moment, cyclists are terrible people to ask about spin
bikes. With very few exceptions, those of us who do want to sit indoors
use real bikes on trainers.

occurred when using the bikes, I would be very grateful. An example of
this could be sitting on the bike, paddling, or the general style.

Canoeists would be best for advice on paddling.
--
David Damerell flcl?
Today is Leicesterday, February.

Chris Bastock wrote:
Dear All,
I am a student at Staffordshire University, studying a
BA(Hons) in Product Design. For my final year I am going to be
designing a new spin bike (aka spinning cycle or group cycle), but at
the moment my knowledge is limited. Who better to ask, than people
who
are into fitness or cyclists? So in my investigation I was told to
use
the Google Groups for help. In my research I will be looking at
existing Spin bikes. So if people could reply with problems that have
occurred when using the bikes, I would be very grateful. An example
of
this could be sitting on the bike, paddling, or the general style.
This would be a great help to me and vital research for the project.

Thank you for your time and hope to hear from people, soon.

My personal "spin" bike sits on a set of spinning rollers and is not in
need of improvement. However, when I have fooled around with an
exer-cycle, I have thought that it would be nice if, while peddling the
bike, the bike would mimic the motion of a real bike by moving slightly
from side to side. I think that might provide a more natural rhythm and
thus encourage longer workouts.

Actually, the position of spin cyclists is not nearly as refined as
those who actually spend the needed time to make sure their bicycle fits
them properly, so even if the spin bike could mimic the side to side
feel of a real bike it probably wouldn't provide much improvement. A
poorly fitting bicycle of any kind is not much of a joy to use.

Never mind.




Chris Bastock wrote:
Dear All,
I am a student at Staffordshire University, studying a
BA(Hons) in Product Design. For my final year I am going to be
designing a new spin bike (aka spinning cycle or group cycle), but at
the moment my knowledge is limited. Who better to ask, than people who
are into fitness or cyclists? So in my investigation I was told to use
the Google Groups for help. In my research I will be looking at
existing Spin bikes. So if people could reply with problems that have
occurred when using the bikes, I would be very grateful. An example of
this could be sitting on the bike, paddling, or the general style.
This would be a great help to me and vital research for the project.

Thank you for your time and hope to hear from people, soon.


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Chris Bastock wrote:

So if people could reply with problems that have
occurred when using the bikes, I would be very grateful. An example of

this could be sitting on the bike, paddling, or the general style.

There are no accurate readouts for tension on the bikes I've used, so
going to a preset level of difficulty is... difficult.

Cyclocomputers are needed with some spin cycle brands to measure crank
revs.

Finer adjustments for seat location (up/down, fore/aft) would be
useful, as the the no-slip pin holes (used as safety measures, of
course) are fairly far apart. Measurement marks could be applied so
that seating position could be repeated easily.

"Consumer" padded saddles are not a good choice. Some saddle attachment
mechanisms are cheesy-- not all that secure while still being difficult
to adjust for tilt.

"Better music" (if any) and "no instructor microphones allowed". --TP

wrote:
Chris Bastock wrote:

So if people could reply with problems that have
occurred when using the bikes, I would be very grateful. An example
of

this could be sitting on the bike, paddling, or the general style.

There are no accurate readouts for tension on the bikes I've used, so
going to a preset level of difficulty is... difficult.


True, but the better instructors lead people by perceived extertion.
"50%", "75%", and "100%" effort levels are different for each person,
and thus any preset tension level is meaningless.

Cyclocomputers are needed with some spin cycle brands to measure
crank
revs.


The local "studio" has Lemond Revmasters
http://www.lemondfitness.com/products/ , which have pretty
comprehensive computers installed:
http://www.lemondfitness.com/products/pilot/index.html

I find that they're fairly informative when the batteries are fresh.

Finer adjustments for seat location (up/down, fore/aft) would be
useful, as the the no-slip pin holes (used as safety measures, of
course) are fairly far apart. Measurement marks could be applied so
that seating position could be repeated easily.


The Lemonds have infinitely adjustable seat and handlebar mounts. I'm
as comfortable on them as I've ever been on an upright bike.

"Consumer" padded saddles are not a good choice. Some saddle
attachment
mechanisms are cheesy-- not all that secure while still being
difficult
to adjust for tilt.

Agreed. Gooshy padding absolutely sucks. A relatively "hard" saddle is
much more pleasant to ride on.


"Better music" (if any) and "no instructor microphones allowed". --TP

Music is the choice of the instructor- most of it is hideous, some is
barely tolerable. However, my taste in music (from Tom Lehrer to Red
Hot Chili Peppers) might not go over well, either.

I prefer to hear the instructor, though- coordinated exercise is one of
the attractions of Spin classes. It bugs the heck out of me when I
*can't* hear the instructor.

Jeff

I've got four years experience particpating in spin classes and two
years experience maintaining the spin bikes.

From a user perspective, I have some suggestions for improvement:

1. The bikes are used by a wide range of particpants. Some are Iron
Man Hawaii qualifiers, others are cardiac rehab graduates. Some
participants are over six feet tall, others are only four-foot-six.
Some folks want an upright position, other need full aero. Pins that
fit into holes on one inch centers are horrible. You need very wide
range of adjustment and infinitely adjustable within the range.

2. It would be great to have a way that we could all use our own
pedals. The mountain bikers are happy with the SPD pedals, but the
triathletes and century riders want their Look and Time kit. The
rehabbers seem to be happy with toe clips.

3. How about some cool electronics? I want to be able to record
cadence, heart rate and watts onto my usb memory chip so I can load it
into my training log at home. Most of us bikers vanish from the spin
classes when the temperature gets over 4C and the sun rises before
0600. I would come back more often if I could get the training data.
If you're designing from scratch what's a couple of strain gages and
prox sensors.

4. One water bottle holder is not enough for the 90+ minute classes.

5. Seat angle should be user adjustable. The ladies seem like the
seats tipped up a little. The full aero guys claim fertility problems.

Maintenance issues:

1. Material selection and product design should be predicated on the
machines being used in the salt water pool. The stronger athletes
DRENCH the machines in sweat. It goes everywhe bearings, fasteners
and inside the tubing where it can't be dried.

2. The chain lines in any models can not be adjusted and the machines
clatter horribly. If your bike sounded that bad and vibrated that
much, you would throw it in the ditch.

3. The component quality supplied by the manufacturers is very low.
Bottom brackets, pedals and seats are consumed at alarming rates.

4. Brakes should be consistent from machine to machine. Many brakes
rely on a foam rubber backer that comes in a dizzying array of
thicknesses and durometers.

Have fun with your project.

Scott wrote:

...peddling...

Chris Bastock wrote:

...paddling...

App shrieked:

It is spelled "pedaling". PEDALING!! GODDAMMIT, PEDALING!!!!!!!

Ooof. I feel better.

App

On 23 Feb 2005 10:24:37 -0800, "
wrote:

Scott wrote:

...peddling...

Chris Bastock wrote:

...paddling...

App shrieked:

It is spelled "pedaling". PEDALING!! GODDAMMIT, PEDALING!!!!!!!

Ooof. I feel better.

App

Dear App,

Or pedalling, if a piddling correction is appropriate.

Carl Fogel

Jeff Willis wrote:

(snip)
but the better instructors lead people by perceived extertion.
"50%", "75%", and "100%" effort levels are different for each person,
and thus any preset tension level is meaningless.

Not preset, but "dial-able", unlike the twist knob that adjusts the
felt pads on the Tomahawk bikes I've used or seen in a couple of
different places. This arrangement makes it difficult to go to a level
of resistance consistently, especially when changing back and forth
between "climbs" and "sprints". Useful would be something like having
one-tooth cog jumps but even smaller. Then the rider picks the "gear"
that takes them to some imaginary percentage of effort. Um,
"repeatability". And quicker than fishing with a dial. The felt-pad
bikes are also inconsistent from machine to machine, which partly
reflects a lot of use. Remember, I'm recommending to the OP. I just
ride what they have and make it work at Spin sessions. "Could be
better".

Thanks for the Lemond link. Curious to see how they did "infinite adj."
securely.

I prefer to hear the instructor, though- coordinated exercise is one
of
the attractions of Spin classes. It bugs the heck out of me when I
*can't* hear the instructor.

Hey, cute girls are another attraction. Let's tell the truth, the ratio
is generally up compared to the usual road ride.

Some instructors have no idea what their audience is hearing. Your ears
are especially delicate during exercise as has been noted here and
elsewhere. Earplugs are probably declasse but nice bright orange ones
would send a message. "Spin mix console" as another option? At the YMCA
where I go, they started using radio. Cool, you don't use the
earphones, you can hear the instructor but *not* the music. Brilliant
f'n solution, concentration on mechanics and effort is made much
easier. --TP

Oh, Carl,

Leave it to you to add some Brit colour to my spelling rant.

"Pedaling" is the American English spelling, "-lling" the British.

But you already knew that :o)

App

wrote:

Hey, cute girls are another attraction. Let's tell the truth, the
ratio
is generally up compared to the usual road ride.

The club I go to sponsors a cycling/triathlon team- there's usually a
bunch of animals (that is, hard-ridin' females) in the class (all men
are animals- everyone knows that). But don't tell my wife: she's the
one who drags me to the spin classes. If you think I avoid angering a
5-foot-10 blonde with a MSCS who's been married to me for 12 year,
well... you're darn right.


Some instructors have no idea what their audience is hearing. Your
ears
are especially delicate during exercise as has been noted here and
elsewhere. Earplugs are probably declasse but nice bright orange ones
would send a message. "Spin mix console" as another option? At the
YMCA
where I go, they started using radio. Cool, you don't use the
earphones, you can hear the instructor but *not* the music. Brilliant
f'n solution, concentration on mechanics and effort is made much
easier. --TP

Ooohh... that sounds great! I'll have to look into the "Spin Mix
console".

Jeff

David Damerell wrote:


I have a good idea; something a bit like a spin bike, but useful for
transport, and which lets you see the country. We could call it "a
bicycle".

Isn't a spinning bicycle basically a fixed-gear (i.e. no freewheel)
exercise bike?

Make it adjustable, but in seconds -- no one wants to waste valuable time
setting up a bike for a 1-hour class.

Problems that I have seen in the past:

Couldn't adjust seat to handlebar distance.
Couldn't adjust seatpost angle.
Couldn't adjust crank length.
Couldn't adjust bike angle to simulate hill-climbing.
Didn't have a fan that goes to 20+mph (ideally correlated with
simulated speed).

Would also like electronics to report on problems such
as unbalanced pedaling (one leg stronger than the other).

On 22 Feb 2005 10:02:07 -0800, (Chris Bastock) wrote:

Dear All,
I am a student at Staffordshire University, studying a
BA(Hons) in Product Design. For my final year I am going to be
designing a new spin bike (aka spinning cycle or group cycle), but at
the moment my knowledge is limited. Who better to ask, than people who
are into fitness or cyclists? So in my investigation I was told to use
the Google Groups for help. In my research I will be looking at
existing Spin bikes. So if people could reply with problems that have
occurred when using the bikes, I would be very grateful. An example of
this could be sitting on the bike, paddling, or the general style.
This would be a great help to me and vital research for the project.

Thank you for your time and hope to hear from people, soon.